As the city welcomes tourists from across the globe for the Pongal festival, local businessmen say that their revenue is affected by the poor condition of roads.
Important business centres like West Perumal Maistry Street and West Marret Street have been dug up for underground drainage work. Though the Madurai Corporation’s Zone 4 office is on West Marret Street, the progress of pipeline construction is slow.
P. Senthil Kumaran, manager of a hotel on West Perumal Maistry Street, says that foreigners who visit Madurai prefer to stay near the Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple as most heritage sites are located closeby. The area around the temple is dotted with shopping destination and eateries. However, with dust settling on food items and clothes, tourists are reluctant to explore local delicacies.
“People from other nations do not like travelling along bumpy roads as they fear damage to luggage. During monsoon season, the entire street is usually just muddy and filled with slush. Often they assume that this is what India is all about. That perception brings down our potential clientele,” he says.
Iconic eateries along the stretch also bear the brunt of impending road work. I. Jayaram, who has worked at a famous restaurant on Town Hall Road for over 20 years, says that the road has become worse in the last one year. “They keep digging the place up and do not patch it again. That is the problem,” he says.
An official from the engineering department of the Corporation says that underground drainage pipes are being laid in five streets near the Zone office. A total of ₹ 8 crore is the estimate of this project under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission. “Work was slow earlier but will be completed in a month’s time,” he adds.
